The present invention is related generally to radio transceivers and more particularly to such transceivers that are voice-responsive.
Radio transceivers capable of receiving and transmitting radio messages directly in response to human voice or speech are well known in the prior art. Such prior art radio transceivers are used in a wide range of applications including their use by police, medical, fire or other emergency personnel. When utilized by such emergency personnel, it is often desirable for a base station or other central location to constantly be appraised of the status of the emergency personnel, e.g., responding to call, at scene, etc. Prior art mobile status units which provide this function must be mounted near the vehicle operator. Mounting is difficult because the units are somewhat bulky and require space in the immediate area of the operator in the operator compartment. The ideal location is in the middle of the operator's line-of-sight. However, this is rarely possible since the operator typically has other functions to perform, such as driving.
Prior art mobile status units require the operator to depress buttons and look at indicators and switches to initiate the proper sequences. Panel indicators implemented with LED components are difficult to see in the daytime, especially in direct sunlight. Indicators implemented with liquid crystal displays are difficult to see at night and have difficulty in operating over the required temperature range. The panel switches can be back lit or placed adjacent to the appropriate indicator and must be sealed thereby increasing the cost of the mobile status unit. The switch area and the distance between switches must be such that a person with a large gloved hand can easily operate the switches. Because of these conflicting requirements prior art mobile status units are typically the result of engineering trade-offs.
The problem of properly locating radio transceivers has been addressed by the prior art. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,032,844 to Imazeki. Disclosed therein is a combination microphone, loudspeaker, and control unit which is adapted to be coupled by a multiconductor cable to a radio transceiver which is capable of transmitting and receiving a plurality of radio signals. The multiconductor cable is secured to a housing for the unit and is adapted to electrically connect the unit to the radio transceiver. The control unit provides the necessary control functions such that the radio transceiver may be located in any convenient location, even locations outside of the operator compartment.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,153,877 to Fathauer et al is for a mobile CB transceiver having the circuitry partitioned so as to permit the chassis housing the receiver circuitry, transmitter circuitry and frequency synthesizer circuitry to be installed in a remote location in a motor vehicle, such as behind the dashboard, under the seat or in the trunk so as to reduce the possibility of theft and/or the likelihood that the chassis could cause injury to the occupants of the vehicle in the event of an accident or sudden stop. All of the control circuitry is housed in a combination microphone and control unit adapted to be held in the hand of the operator of the vehicle and operated by the same hand which is holding the combination unit.
Another approach found in the prior art is to make some of the control functions controllable by spoken phrases thereby eliminating the need for manual adjustments. Such prior art radio transceivers partially responsive to voice commands typically provide for the switching of the transceiver between the transmit and the receive modes. See for example U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,169,221 to A. J. Franchi; 4,103,105 to Akiyama et al; 4,166,978 to White; and 4,178,548 to Thompson.
One type of transceiver totally controlled in its operational modes by voice commands is disclosed in commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 343,754 filed concurrently herewith. Disclosed therein is a voice-controlled operator-interacting radio transceiver capable of performing a plurality of control operations such as turning the transceiver on and off, switching the transceiver from a transmit to a receive mode, changing the operating frequency of the transceiver, etc., in response to voice commands thereby eliminating the need for hands-on operation by the operator.
Sound-control of machines other than radio transceivers is also known. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,275,266 to Lasar a device for controlling machines by voice is disclosed which responds to a plurality of predetermined musical tones in a sequence to generate a digital control output signal. In an article entitled "Experimental Telephone Lets Disabled Dial By Voice", Bell Lab (USA), Volume 51, No. 9, an experimental telephone for physically handicapped people unable to hold a telephone handset or dial a conventional phone is described. The telephone will respond to any sound, even whistling, blowing, or tapping, above a certain threshold. The user must then turn on the phone's circuitry by entering an access code before entering the phone number.
In an article titled "Voice Data Entry Computer Terminal Allows User To Select 900-Word Vocabulary" found in Digital Technology Review "USA", Volume 17, No. 6, an intelligent voice terminal is disclosed which enables operators to enter data directly into a computer in familiar English language by speaking into a microphone or telephone handset. The system may be expanded to provide audio response to a voice synthesizer unit. The heart of the intelligent voice terminal is an acoustic pattern classifier that produces a digital code in response to a received utterance. An action structure associating an appropriate system action with each command that is recognized is also available. Actions may range from simply outputting a code associated with a recognized word to executing a complex computer program that is a function of several previously input commands. Another article discussing the voice-input of data is found in EDN, May 27, 1981, pages 101-113 by Edward R. Teja.